the basement diaries: volume 2

The Mount Everest of projects we’ve ever tackled is officially underway, although it seems like every time we hit the gas we have to lurch back to a stop. Here’s a step through what we’ve been doing the past several weeks…

With our handwritten sketch of every measurement possible…

…I drew a more cleaned-up version to scale…

…and off Page went to our permit application office, where we were told that the “next” step in getting a permit (we weren’t aware there were further steps!) was to line up our estimates for electrical, HVAC, and plumbing. We needed to have the name and number of anyone setting foot in the basement, on the paperwork when applying.

So back home Page came and we started making some calls and getting some referrals. One by one, we gave people the cook’s tour and collected our estimates, which took much longer than the “couple of days” I originally wagered. A few weeks later, with costs in hand and the names/numbers of the guys who will be signing off on the work, we turned in our official application and waited for a call.

There are major bonuses to living in a small town (or in our case, suburb) – within a few short days, we received the call that our permit had the green light.

Now cue another progress pause as we throw in a quick detour to handle re-siding of our house due to storm damage…

…annnnnd, okay, resume progress….

Finally, we were able to pick up this magic piece of paper, officially allowing us to begin building.

First hurdle, accomplished.

Next, Page put together our lumber order, which showed up at our house this week.

I was underwhelmed by the size of the order when it showed up…until Page pointed out that the exterior walls of the space have all been framed already during the original build. (Three cheers for that!)

We plan to be in the framing stage for a week or two but we will check in here on the blog on a month-by-month basis for a re-cap of each major phase.

While we are a couple (large) steps away from the painting phase, I don’t want to be stuck making a rushed decision, so I’ve been thinking a LOT about what I want the aesthetic of this area to be. It may be altered a bit once I get swatch samples on the walls, but more or less, I think we have our color scheme. I’ve been informed the pink must remain in “accents only” (no walls this color ha!) but otherwise, the dude-half of this household was all for it!